42 



JOURNAL OP HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ July 19, 1864. 



atmosphere of the house until the plants have become 

 thoroughly dry, when the lights should be returned, shut 

 down close, and allowed to remain so until, at the same 

 time next day, the treatment be repeated. Should the sur- 

 face of the soil be disposed to green over, remove carefully 

 the worst, adding afterwards a slight surfacing. 



The AnaBctochiluses already number upwards of thirty, of 

 which superior as ready-growing are, intermedius, Lowii, 

 Lobbi, superbus, Veitchii, striatus, argenteus pictus, se- 

 taceus, and setaceus albo-marginatus. 



W. Earley, Digsviell. 



INTENDED STKAWBEEEY FETE 



AND BOTTQTTET EXHIBITION OF THE ROYAL HOETICUXTUEAL 

 SOCIETY. 



These were wished to be on the 13th inst., but proved 

 entire failures. There were twenty-five classes with corre- 

 sponding prizes for Strawberries, but only entries in seven 

 of the classes, and it may be said there was no competition 

 in them, for ten prizes were awarded, and of these Mr. 

 Lydiard, of Batheaston, near Bath, received seven ! The 

 heaviest single Strawberry was a British Queen, from Mr. 

 Lydiard, weighing 1 oz. 8 dwt. : the heaviest twelve Myatfs 

 Eleanor, also from Mr. Lydiard, lS^-ozs. 



Then it was announced that " arrangements would be 

 made by which it was hoped that Eellows, &c. (and others ?) 

 might be able to purchase a supply of the different fruits ex- 

 hibited;" yet it surpassed belief at the time, when it was 

 ann ounced on the first day, that all the fruit that could be 

 purchased came from Mr. Solomon and Messrs. Webber, the 

 fruiterers in Covent Garden, and that if you bought the 

 fruit you could not have it until the day following ! Did 

 not the managers know that freshness is essential to excel- 

 lence in Strawberries? 



The exhibition of bouquet-holders was equally defective. 

 The very beautiful one presented to the Princess of Wales 

 by the Maharajah Dhuleep Singh, was kindly sent for exhibi- 

 tion by Her Royal Highness, and there were eight or ten 

 others in a glass case, but no one knew anything about 

 them, nor did any one seem to care. If prizes had been 

 offered for the most tastefully arranged bouquets, some 

 interest would have been excited, and they would have been 

 more consonant with the objects of a Horticultural Society. 



CULTIVATION OF THE MELON. 



{Continued from page 23.) 

 Watering after the Fruit has Set. — When the fruit 

 has set and begun to swell water will be needed once or 

 twice a-week, or it may be every other night, so as to keep 

 the soil in a moderately moist condition ; and in addition to 

 this a watering, which should be given about two o'clock in 

 the afternoon in April, or if earlier in the season in the 

 morning, and after April at the time of shutting up the 

 frame, let that be when it may, so that the plants may not 

 only feel the refreshing influence of water at the root, but 

 that of a moist atmosphere, such as is produced naturally 

 after a shower. They should be lightly sprinkled overhead 

 daily at the time of shutting up the frame on the afternoons 

 of hot days, to create a moist atmosphere, presently to be 

 cooled down by the cold of night, thereby producing a kind 

 of artificial dew to repair the waste in the day, and rein- 

 vigorate the plants. This sprinkling overhead should not 

 be practised in dull, cloudy, or rainy weather, nor should the 

 watering be then so plentiful; but at the same time it is 

 necessary to have the soil in a moist state whilst the fruit 

 is swelling ; three gallons of water at the same temperature 

 as the frame being sufficient to apply to one light at a time. 

 Whenever water is given, or the plants sprinkled overhead, 

 care should be taken not to wet the stem or centre of the 

 plant whence the branches radiate, or the stems will very 

 soon decay at that part. The soil beneath the centre o'f 

 each light should be slightly elevated above the rest of the 

 surface, so that water may be carried away from the stems 

 of the plants, and a space a foot in diameter, which is sup- 

 posed to contain the stems of the plants, in the centre of 

 each light, should never be wetted more than can be helped 

 after the bed is earthed. 



When the fruit begins to net water must be supplied 

 rather less copiously, still keeping up a moderate moisture 

 in the bed and atmosphere ; but when the netting spreads 

 to nearly every part of the fruit, cease syringing or sprink- 

 ling the plants overhead, and diminish the supply at the 

 root to one-half what it was when the fruit was swe llin g. 

 After the fruit has become netted all over desist altogether 

 from watering the surface of the soil, and unless the foliage 

 begins to show signs of want of water, no more should be 

 given until the fruit is ripe; but if water be absolutely 

 necessary to keep the foliage in good order, it must be given 

 by making holes in the soil and pouring water into them 

 through drain-pipes, for a dry atmosphere is essential to 

 the perfection of the fruit. The soil even when the fruit is 

 ripening should be in such a state of moisture as to cause the 

 fruit to ripen fully. Watery and insipid fruit is the result of 

 a moist atmosphere ; but dryness induces richness of flavour, 

 yet too dry a soil affects the juiciness of the fruit. Too much 

 moisture in the atmosphere, also, at the time of ripening, 

 with a wet soil, causes the fruit to crack, especially if accom- 

 panied by a low temperature. The soil, therefore, should 

 only be kept moderately moist after the fruit begins to net, 

 and the atmosphere cannot be kept too dry if fruit is desired 

 that needs no sugar to make it fit to eat. 



Training. — It is presumed that the plants were stopped 

 prior to planting out, and supposing them to be stopped 

 at the second rough leaf, they will each push three or 

 four shoots, one from each of the rough leaves, and gene- 

 rally one from each of the bases of the seed-leaves, and 

 these shoots do not spread much before they push laterals. 

 These laterals, if left, overcrowd the neck of the plant ; but 

 as we are not certain that the shoots on which we are de- 

 pending to produce fruit will do so, it is advisable to retain 

 two or three laterals on the two shoots that spring from 

 the base of the plant, and such laterals should be stopped at 

 the second leaf. The first and third lateral of every al- 

 ternate principal shoot should be cut away close to the 

 shoot from which it takes its rise, the intermediate shoots 

 having the first and third laterals retained, the second only 

 being cut away. The laterals retained to supply the place 

 of the principal shoots should these not set their fruit, or in 

 order to supply shoots for a second crop, should be stopped 

 at the second leaf, so as to throw as much support as possible 

 into the principal shoots. These will grow rapidly and 

 continue to throw out laterals as they advance, each of 

 which must be stopped at the second leaf, and this stopping 

 will again cause the sap to flow freely into the principal 

 shoots. These should be trained at equal distances apart 

 towards the front or back of the frame, according to their 

 position ; the distance between them should be 1 foot. We 

 have now only to cut clean out every alternate lateral for 

 1 foot from the lateral left at the base of each principal 

 shoot, stopping those left at the second leaf unless fruit be 

 shown, when they must be stopped at the joint above the 

 fruit, but not until the flower has been properly impreg- 

 nated and the corolla has closed. By the time these laterals 

 push sub-laterals the principal shoots will be advanced to 

 within 6 inches of the sides of the frame, when we stop 

 them. This will induce laterals, and on these and the 

 laterals already stopped, now pushing sub-laterals, we expect 

 fruit will be shown in sufficient numbers to warrant our 

 keeping the atmosphere dry for a time, to facilitate the 

 setting. 



The proper number of fruit on a plant is two at an 

 early period of the season, or later on when large fruit are 

 required ; three after April, to afford full-sized fruit, and as 

 many more as desired, only no one need expect to have on 

 one plant six Melons equal in size to those on plants pro- 

 ducing two or three. It not unfrequently occurs that the 

 laterals retained near the stem of the plant show fruit, in 

 consequence of the frequent stopping, before those on the 

 principal shoots do so. Some make a practice of taking 

 such fruits away, the reason being that if they should set 

 they will require moisture for swelling, and that if not sup- 

 plied with it they never attain any size, whilst if moisture 

 is supplied on their account it endangers the principal show 

 of fruit. Though it is preferable to have the flowers open at 

 nearly the same time, yet I do not consider it wise to miss a 

 couple of fruit on a plant, though it be the only one in a 

 frame that shows so early, for fruit formed early near the 



